Nigeria: Finance Minister Calls for Stronger Regional Tax Cooperation Across West Africa

Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, has called for stronger regional collaboration to improve tax administration, enhance compliance with ECOWAS tax directives and boost domestic revenue mobilisation across West Africa.

Oyedele made the appeal during a courtesy visit by a delegation from the West African Tax Administration Forum (WATAF), led by its Executive Secretary, Jules Tapsoba Sulio, to the Federal Ministry of Finance headquarters in Abuja.

According to a statement issued by the minister’s Senior Special Assistant on Communications and Press, Mary-Ann Duke Okon, the engagement focused on strengthening cooperation among West African countries as governments seek to expand their tax bases, improve revenue collection and reduce reliance on borrowing and commodity-dependent revenues.

The discussions also reflected ongoing regional efforts to harmonise tax policies, strengthen institutional capacity and leverage digital technologies to modernise tax administration.

During the meeting, Oyedele commended WATAF for its contributions to improving tax administration across the region since its establishment in 2011. He, however, urged the organisation to assume a more active role in monitoring member states’ implementation of regional tax agreements.

The minister proposed that WATAF develop practical benchmarking tools and performance dashboards to measure compliance with ECOWAS tax directives, noting that such mechanisms would promote accountability, encourage peer learning and raise tax administration standards across West Africa.

He further encouraged the regional body to expand its benchmarking initiatives by identifying and documenting successful tax administration models within member countries.

According to Oyedele, sharing best practices in areas such as tax digitalisation, taxation of the informal sector and broader tax policy reforms would enable countries across the region to accelerate reforms and strengthen their domestic revenue systems.

The minister also reiterated the importance of collaboration in building more efficient, transparent and technology-driven tax administrations capable of supporting sustainable economic development.

Speaking during the visit, WATAF Executive Secretary Jules Tapsoba Sulio congratulated Oyedele on his appointment and reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to supporting member countries in strengthening their tax systems.

Sulio highlighted Nigeria’s longstanding leadership within the regional tax body, noting that the country’s financial, technical and institutional support has played a significant role in WATAF’s growth and development.

He said the organisation would continue to provide capacity building, technical assistance, research support, digital transformation initiatives and other collaborative programmes aimed at improving tax administration across West Africa.

Both parties also explored opportunities for deeper cooperation between the Federal Ministry of Finance and WATAF, particularly in advancing domestic revenue mobilisation, promoting regional tax harmonisation, accelerating digital transformation and strengthening institutional capacity across member states.

Nigeria has intensified efforts in recent years to modernise its tax administration through digitalisation, institutional reforms and policies designed to broaden the tax base, improve compliance and increase non-oil revenue as part of broader fiscal sustainability and economic diversification objectives.

Established in 2011, the West African Tax Administration Forum serves as a regional platform for collaboration among tax authorities, promoting knowledge sharing, research, technical assistance and institutional capacity building to strengthen tax systems and support economic integration across West Africa.